Daily Buzz: 16 March 2026

US Urges China, Other Nations to Send Warships to Secure Gulf Oil Flow

Washington called on other nations, including China, Japan, South Korea, France and the UK, to send warships to the Middle East to secure the Strait of Hormuz after President Donald Trump said US and Israeli bombs demolished Iranian military, but not oil sites, on Kharg Island, Tehran's main oil-production base. He said oil installations will become targets if Iran doesn't allow normal shipping through the strait to resume. He added that the US might attack the island "a few more times, just for fun."

No country immediately put its hand up in answer to Trump's call. A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington told CNN that what China wants is an immediate cessation of hostilities but declined to discuss Trump's request. Any decision to dispatch Japanese military vessels would face "high hurdles," ruling Liberal Democratic Party policy chief Takayuki Kobayashi told public broadcaster NHK on Sunday. The UK said it is looking at "options." The Hormuz waterway normally carries about a fifth of the world's oil.

Trump said he's not ready to make a deal with Tehran, rebuffing peace efforts by Middle East allies, as the war entered its third week. Kevin Hassett, head of the White House's National Economic Council, said the Pentagon estimates the war will last four to six weeks longer.

Israel said it conducted at least 200 strikes on Iran on Sunday and has "thousand" of targets yet to hit. Iranian drones hit a residential area in Tel Aviv and a building housing US diplomats in Israel. A rocket attack hit the international airport in Baghdad; the US warned citizens to leave Iraq immediately after a second missile attack on its embassy there. Iran issued an evacuation warning for three major ports in the United Arab Emirates, where it claims US forces were sheltering. One of the ports reported a fire caused by debris from an intercepted Iranian drone. Formula 1 motor racing announced that Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grand Prix events scheduled next month have been cancelled.

Israel rejected calls for talks to end its attacks on Lebanon, which have killed more than 800 people, mostly civilian. Israel said Iran-backed Hezbollah militants must be completely disarmed before any talks, which is unlikely given a weak government in Beirut.

In an interview with NBC News, Trump shrugged off rising oil prices: "There's so much oil and gas out there, but it's being clogged up a little bit." Benchmark Brent crude rose 2.6 percent to US$105.83 a barrel when oil markets reopened Sunday evening in New York.

Ukraine's 'Forgotten War' Wages On

In the Ukraine war, which has been overshadowed by the Middle East conflict, President Volodymyr Zelensky said the US wants to postpone peace talks that were scheduled this week. Russia pounded the nation with missiles and drones over the weekend, killing at least six. Zelensky has criticized the US decision to suspend sanctions on some Russian oil to alleviate global shortages, saying the billions of dollars Moscow earns will go into the war campaign. In the Middle East conflict, Ukraine has been helping Gulf states with drone interception technology it has developed.

Top Business

Didi, 'China's Uber,' Narrows Loss in Fourth Quarter

Didi, an app-based Chinese provider of ride-hailing, bike rental, taxi and food delivery services, narrowed its fourth quarter loss to 333 billion yuan (US$49 billion) from 1.3 billion yuan a year on a record 39 million daily transactions in China operations. The company, often called "China's Uber," said revenue rose 10.5 percent to 58.4 billion yuan, reflecting growth in global markets such as Brazil and Mexico. Research and development spending increased 17 percent to 2.5 billion yuan. Platform sales from its China mobility segment rose 25 percent, accounting for about 85 percent of global sales. Didi said its next-generation R2 robotaxi model began deliveries in January. The company said it will continue to increase investment in autonomous driving and integrate it into operations. For the full year, the Beijing-based company said revenue increased 9.6 percent to 226.7 billion yuan but profit attributed to shareholders slipped 21 percent to 992 million yuan.

Didi listed in New York in 2021, but its shares were later delisted and now trade on the over-the counter market. Its app was suspended during a probe by China's cyberspace regulators but restored in 2023. In Brazil, Didi's food delivery service is under intense competition from Chinese rival Meituan, which entered the market last year. Didi has reportedly been looking at an initial public offering in Hong Kong.

China Urges Quality Marine-Based Growth

Chinese President Xi Jinping called for faster development of the country's marine-related industries, including fisheries, shipping, shipbuilding and offshore oil production, in an article to be published Monday in the Qiushi journal. Xi said coordination between onshore and marine-based activities should be strengthened and emerging sectors like wind power and marine biotech encouraged. The nation needs more advanced shipbuilding, better coastal planning and greener, more digitalized ports. Marine ecosystems also need to be protected, Xi said. The Ministry of Natural Resources said on Friday ocean-related industries had a value of 11 trillion yuan (US$1.6 trillion) last year, accounting for 8 percent of gross domestic product.

Chinese AI Glasses Gain Global Market Share

Chinese-made AI-powered smart glasses are forecast to account for 45 percent of worldwide shipments this year, according to International Data Corp. The forecast came at the Appliance and Electronics World Expo in Shanghai. IDC estimates global shipments of Chinese AI glasses of 22.7 million units in 2026, a 56 percent increase from a year earlier. Companies including Alibaba-backed Qwen AI Glasses, Xreal, RayNeo and Rokid displayed new glasses at the exhibition, including versions with larger storage, AI translation and location-based services. Despite strong growth, industry executives said production bottlenecks, supply-chain capacity and product differentiation remain key challenges for the industry.

Cosco Suspends Use of Panama Canal Port

Panama said it hopes China shipping giant Cosco will reconsider its decision to suspend use of the Balboa port at the southern entrance of the Panama Canal. Cosco, which accounts for about 4 percent of the cargo traffic passing through the canal, is tangentially involved in the ongoing dispute involving Panama, China and the US over control of ports at either end of the waterway. Control of the two ports was transferred to Danish shipping giant Maersk from Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison earlier this year after Panama's Supreme Court ruled existing contracts were illegal. The US wants control of the ports out of Chinese hands, but a deal involving their sale to a US-backed consortium was scuppered when China insisted that Cosco be part of any new shareholding structure.

Economy & Markets

Moonshot Seeks US$1 Billion of New Investment

Chinese technology startup Moonshot AI is seeking to raise as much as US$1 billion in an expanded funding round that would value the company at US$18 billion, Bloomberg News reported. The Kimi chatbot developer has begun discussions for the fundraising after securing more than US$700 million earlier this year. Moonshot backers include Alibaba, Tencent Holdings and 5Y Capital. The company rolled out Kimi Claw to seize the trend craze started by OpenClaw, sending monthly revenue past the 2025 total. The company was founded by former Tsinghua University professor Yang Zhilin, who previously worked for Meta and Google.

Meta Planning Big Layoffs Related to AI

Meta, owner of Facebook and Instagram, is planning to lay off up to 20 percent of its workforce to offset costly projects related to artificial intelligence infrastructure, Reuters reported. The downsizing also reflects increased use of AI in employee operations. The layoffs will stir renewed concerns about the effect of AI on jobs. Meta is now focused on generative AI, a segment that creates original content such as text, images, video, audio or software code in response to a user's prompt. The company earlier announced plans to invest US$600 billion in date centers by 2008.

Corporate

China's Power Construction Wins US$2 Billion Solar Contract

Power Construction Corporation of China said it secured a US$2 billion contract related to construction of the world's largest solar power and storage project in the United Arab Emirates. The company is part of a project consortium that includes its Abu Dhabi arm, subsidiary Huadong Engineering and UAE renewable energy company Masdar. The project includes a 5.2-gigawatt power station and a 19-gigawatt-hour energy storage system, and is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 5.7 million tons a year once operational.

Lego Says China Sales Rose 7 percent in 2025

Danish toymaker Lego Group said sales in China last year grew 7 percent from a year earlier, but provided no further breakdown of mainland operations. The company, famous for its plastic building bricks, has a factory in China, 450 outlets and a theme park that opened last year in Shanghai. It reported a 12 percent global revenue rise to US$12. billion last year.

Shanghai Brain-Tech Firms Secure Fresh Funding

Two Shanghai-based medical technology startups secured new funding as investors continue to bet on China's fast-growing brain-computer interface sector. StairMed, a developer of implantable brain technologies, said it raised 500 million yuan (US$73 million) in a round led by Alibaba, with participation from SDIC Unity Capital and existing investors including Tencent, Qiming Venture Partners and Lilly Asia Ventures. StairMed completed China's first prospective clinical trial of an invasive brain implant in 2025. Futong Huizhi Medical Technology said it secured seed funding and unveiled China's first ultrasound-based device.

VW-XPeng Electric Car Begins Production

Volkswagen said its first electric vehicle developed jointly with China's Xpeng Motors, the ID.UNYX 08, has officially begun mass production. The vehicle is expected to hit the domestic market in the first half of this year.

UK-based Haleon to Invest in China Oral Health Sector

UK consumer health company Haleon said it will invest nearly 600 million yuan (US$87 million) to build a new oral-care production center in Shanghai, expected to be completed at the end of 2027.

Chief Executive Brian McNamara said, "China is one of the world's fastest-growing oral health markets and the largest globally for gum health." The company has 30 offices in China and manufacturing sites in Tianjin and Suzhou.

Yatsen Receives US$120 Million in New Funds

Chinese cosmetics maker Yatsen Holding said it secured US$120 million in fundraising led by founder Huang Jinfeng and Trustar Capital. The New York-listed company said the funds will be used to support research and development, overseas expansion and supply-chain upgrading, Yicai reported.